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2019 Kim Kim River toxic pollution

Water contamination event in Malaysia

  • 8 min read
  • 3 chapters

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Background of pollution

The incident started on 7 March 2019 after several students and canteen workers from two schools near the river began to fall ill and complaining of breathing difficulties. Both schools were ordered to shut down and all the victims were sent to Sultan Ismail Hospital while investigations were being carried out by state health authorities over the cause. Twenty-one people were warded at the hospital with some being admitted into the emergency unit and intensive care unit (ICU). Some of the students brought to the hospital were already fainted and with symptoms such as vomiting. Those who were not seriously affected were given outpatient treatment and allowed to return home. During recovery, some of the seriously affected victims shared their experience of suddenly being ill after inhaling unpleasant odour in their school compound. The number of victims hospitalised over the toxic fumes rose to 76 on the following day and on 9 March 2019, five police reports have been made on the issue with police began investigating the case.

Further spread of toxic fumes and water pollution

On 11 March, the second wave of air poisoning took effect with further 106–207 victims hospitalised before escalating into more than 1,000 victims with eight admitted into the ICU. The spread of the toxic fumes was aided by hot weather combined with strong winds, which made more people sick. The Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department director-general Mohammad Hamdan Wahid explained that the further spread of toxic fumes could have been prevented if the illegally dumped chemicals found earlier were immediately removed. However, the authorities did not dispose the chemicals after concluding it was no longer reactive, allegedly due to the costs involved. Until 19 March, further 76 police reports have been made. On 20 June, about 3 months since the pollution first discovered, a number of students from schools in the Pasir Gudang area began complaining of nausea, dizziness and experienced vomiting which eventually led to the temporary closure of the schools in the area. The authorities later confirmed it as the third wave of air poisoning resulted from the river pollution, which were not fully cleared.

In August 2019, residents in Acheh's Well Village near the Daing and Kopok rivers (tributaries to the Kim Kim River) complained that the water in both rivers have turned black and oily with unbearable foul stench which were believed to have spread from the chemical pollution of the Kim Kim River. A resident interviewed on the issue said the rivers were once homes to various crabs, freshwater fish and shrimps with children used to swim in, but everything has been damaged since the pollution turned worse in April.

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